1. Technical Field
The present disclosure relates to endoscopic surgical devices, and more particularly, to endoscopic surgical devices capable of multiple degrees of articulation.
2. Background of the Related Art
Endoscopic surgery is a minimally invasive technique for performing surgery intracorporeally without requiring a large incision. Typically, endoscopic surgery is conducted by inserting a number of ports through small incisions in the patient's skin to access a surgical site. One of the ports receives an endoscope, which is a video camera-like device. The surgeon views the surgical site via the endoscope and performs the surgery by inserting various surgical devices into the patient through the ports. During endoscopic surgery, the surgeon may introduce different surgical devices through the ports. For example, the surgeon may insert a hand operated endoscopic grasper, a dissector, shears, scissors and the like. This technique does not require “opening up” the patient, resulting in less invasive surgery than conventional procedures.
In an effort to reduce the number of incisions required, single incisions procedures and related surgical devices have been developed over the years. For instance, the surgeon may make one incision and maneuver a surgical device through the patient's body until it reaches the desired surgical site. However, it is often challenging to steer a surgical device through the complexities of the human anatomy. In light of this difficulty, a need exist for surgical devices capable of multitude degrees of operation and motion.